Lella Lombardi

Lella Lombardi driving a March 751 Formula One car in practice for the 1975 Dutch Grand Prix

Lombardi at the 1975 Race of Champions driving a March 751

Lombardi was born in Frugarolo, a small town in Piedmont in Italy. Her father was a butcher, and Lombardi's first job was to drive the delivery van for her family shop. After a brief experience with karting, she bought her first car in 1965 and raced in Formula Monza. In 1968 she moved on to Italian Formula Three, where she ended the season as runner-up to Franco Bernabei. In 1970 she raced a Biraghi in the Italian Formula 850 series. Lombardi won four of the ten races in the calendar, winning the championship. In 1971 she moved to London where she won the Formula Ford Mexico championship. In 1974 she raced in Formula 5000 with an Eagle Chevrolet.

Lombardi debuted in Formula One in 1974 with a privately entered Brabham supported by the Italian Automobile Club but failed to qualify.[3] In 1975 she was invited to join Vittorio Brambilla and Hans-Joachim Stuck at March and raced the full season. At the opening race of the campaign in South Africa, Lombardi became the first woman, since Maria Teresa de Filippis in 1958, to successfully qualify for a Grand Prix. Her race lasted for 23 laps until she was forced to retire with a fuel system problem. 1975 would prove to be an eventful season for the March Team. Brambilla scored a surprise victory in the rain-shortened 1975 Austrian Grand Prix, while Lombardi scored a Championship point in the Spanish Grand Prix. The race suffered a major tragedy after 25 laps, when the rear wing on Rolf Stommelen's Embassy Hill broke, sending him into the barrier. He bounced off it and back into the road, hitting the barrier across the way and flying over it. While trying to avoid Stommelen as he crossed the track, Carlos Pace crashed. Five spectators were killed by Stommelen's flying car with the driver suffering a broken leg, a broken wrist and two cracked ribs. The race continued for another four laps, during which Jochen Mass passed Jacky Ickx for the lead. On lap 29, the race was halted with Mass the winner, Ickx second and Jean-Pierre Jarier crossed the line in third position. Carlos Reutemann finished fourth ahead of Brambilla, while Lombardi finished in sixth. With the race being stopped before three-fourths of the scheduled race distance was reached, only half points were awarded.[4] Lombardi's other best result was at the German Grand Prix at the Nürburgring, where she finished seventh. At the United States Grand Prix at Watkins Glen Lombardi had a one-off drive for Williams. She qualified for the race but an ignition problem prevented her from starting.

In 1976 Lombardi was confirmed at March alongside Brambilla and Stuck. She finished 14th at the Brazilian Grand Prix but the team decided to replace her with Ronnie Peterson, who became available after breaking away from Lotus. She then had a short-lived and unsuccessful partnership with RAM Racing, her best result being 12th at the Austrian Grand Prix.

In 1974 Lombardi was the first female racing driver to qualify and compete at the Race of Champions in Brands Hatch. She raced a Lola-Chevrolet and finished 14th but was not classified. In the 1975 event, she was once again able to qualify and compete with a March-Ford. She was forced to retire after 20 laps.

Lombardi later raced in sports cars with some success. Her best season was in 1979 when she won the 6 hours of Pergusa and the 6 hours of Vallelunga. She also competed four times at the 24 hours of Le Mans, her best result being in 1976 when she finished 9th in a Porsche Carrera.

Lombardi had also started in NASCAR driving in the Firecracker 400 NASCAR race at the Daytona International Speedway in 1977. There were two other female drivers in the field: American Janet Guthrie and Belgian Christine Beckers. Lombardi finished 31st.[5]

Lombardi retired from racing in 1988. In 1989 she founded her own racing team, Lombardi Autosport.[6]

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap.)

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap.)

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap.)

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap)

(key) (note: results shown in bold indicate pole position; results in italics indicate fastest lap)

(key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)